Provided herein are methods of molding thermoplastic polymers into optical elements. The optical elements in the form of cylindrical discs, semi-finished lens blanks or finished lenses are compression molded at high temperature typically above thermoplastic polymers softening temperature and under high pressure. The semi-finished lens blanks and finished lenses are molded using front and back glass molds inside a mold assembly which reshapes the cylindrical discs that are either previously molded or cut out from thick slab. Also provided are methods for producing single vision and progressive addition lens prescriptions.